Dramatic Drop In Preliminary FCAT Writing Scores

Tunisian students take the baccalaureat (high school graduation exam) exam on June 9, 2011 in Tunis. Yesterday Tunisian Prime Minister Beji Caid Essebsi announced that the first free elections in the post-Ben Ali in Tunisia, originally scheduled for July 24, are postponed to October 23 . AFP PHOTO / FETHI BELAID (Photo credit should read FETHI BELAID/AFP/Getty Images)

File photo of students taking a test. Preliminary results show a dramatic decline in writing scores on the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test. (FETHI BELAID/AFP/Getty Images)

The State Board of Education on Monday responded by scheduling an emergency conference call meeting for Tuesday to consider reducing the passing grade.

The board previously made this year’s test more difficult. It increased expectations for the correct use of punctuation, capitalization, spelling, and sentence structure as well as the quality of details used to explain, clarify, or define.

The preliminary results show only 27 percent of 4th graders received a passing score of 4 or better compared to 81 percent last year.

For 8th graders it was 33 percent — down from 82 percent in 2011. For 10th graders it was 38 percent — a drop from 80 percent last year.